Page 19 - Food & Drink Magazine March 2021

A position paper needs to be prepared by AIP, the Fight Food Waste CRC, and its participants to clarify these definitions.
2Shelf life is the key to NPPD The shelf-life of new product packaging should be considered throughout the NPPD design process. Achieving the set shelf-life, determined during the brief stage of product- packaging design, will ensure quality and safety throughout the supply chain and ultimately within consumers’ homes.
3Overcoming barriers to the adoption of SFP criteria
The costs of implementing SFP and the return on investment are key barriers to the adoption of SFP design.
time temperature indicators, sensors, scavengers, QR codes) and retail marketing (e.g., shop talkers, which use the retail space rather than on-pack information) should be considered when designing product information communications.
6
More assessment is required of how packaging features and SFP strategies are understood and used by consumers. The important connections between packaging design and their actual use could be strengthened through new collaborations and opportunities.
Understanding how
consumers use packaging
examples to
illustrate how
packaging features
can reduce food waste. Case studies and
training courses were viewed as beneficial assets rather than generic checklists. Product specific guides to how Save Food features can be integrated into product packaging formats should also be encouraged. The AIP has commenced this work.
Together with the stakeholder survey results in Report 1 and a completed literature review, this multi-method, multi- disciplinary project will guide future research and form a baseline for the food and packaging industry.
It is recommended these surveys be repeated after the rollout of the SFP design criteria and framework that is being developed through the AIP. Doing so will reveal if there has been greater industry adoption of SFP design strategies, perceptions, and NPPD processes.
The AIP hopes this research is just the start of many conversations around how improved SFP design can help minimise food waste all the way across the value chain to the household.
We look forward to working with food and beverage manufacturers to design innovative SFP solutions that offer the lowest environmental impact and the maximum minimisation of food waste whereverpossible. ✷
BY ASSOCIATION
“ ...if there’s training involved that gets more people understanding the importance of considering SFP design criteria really early in the process, then that will be beneficial.”
✷ CONSORTIUM INDUSTRY VOICES
BEHIND SFP
The Australian Institute of Packaging (AIP) is the project leader for the Save Food Packaging Criteria and Framework 1.2.1 project. This includes a Save Food Packaging Consortium made up of leaders in SFP design and innovations to ensure the guidelines developed
are practical for the industries they will serve.
The Consortium is made up of the AIP as project lead and RMIT as the research partner. Project contributors are Zipform Packaging, Sealed Air, Multivac, and APCO. Project partners are Plantic Technologies, Result Group and Ulma Packaging. The Extension Network consists of Australian Food Cold Chain Council, Australian Food and Grocery Council, and Australian Institute of Food Science and Technology.
4Consumer food waste education vs packaging Participants communicated their concerns on the current consumer trend that vilifies packaging, specifically plastic packaging. This highlights the need for enhanced consumer education on both the environmental and food safety elements embedded within the design of current and new product packaging.
5Marketing SFP benefits
to consumers
It is suggested that marketing focuses more on SFP features to assist in consumer education of food waste issues. On-pack communication was demonstrated as one option, however, as the demand for smaller pack sizes increases, there is an opportunity to explore alternative techniques. Active & intelligent (e.g., EMAP,
7SFP design criteria deployment There is significant appetite in Australia’s food and packaging sector for the deployment of the SFP design criteria and supporting material among food and packaging supply chain stakeholders. Building upon the work currently undertaken by the AIP, the criteria will provide detailed explanations of the core SFP strategies such as: portion control; resealability; on-pack communication; and extension of shelf life and barriers. This will arm packaging technologists, innovation, R&D, and marketing managers with the tools to integrate SFP their product packaging design.
8
The interviews revealed organisations want practical
SFP case studies and
training material
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